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Computer Vision Syndrome: The rise of digital eye strain


(Portland Tribune)

In this high tech world, we are constantly texting, emailing and checking the latest
sports scores.

We may love our smart phones, computers and tablets, but in the process, our eyes
are suffering the consequences. Dr. Mark Pennesi, assistant professor in ophthalmic
genetics at the OHSU Casey Eye Institute, said there can be "deleterious" effects
on your eyes if you're using these devices all day long.

It can be as simple as the number of times you blink.

"Any time you are looking at a screen, your blink rate decreases," Pennesi said.
 "That can actually lead to dry eyes and ocular irritation." According to Pennesi,
your eyes need to blink every couple of seconds.

He added that eye strain and headaches are associated with prolonged exposure to
 these screens.

"These kind of things can be bothersome," Pennesi said.

"The best thing to do (if you're in front of a computer all day) is to take frequent
breaks. Maybe once an hour, get up from your computer - when we're looking at things
close up, muscles in our eye actually have to contract, to change the shape of the
lens, so that we can focus on things closer to us."

To help alleviate this, Pennesi suggests you take hourly breaks at work and perhaps
go outside to look at something far away. This helps the muscles, within the eye,
relax.

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